crux
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Hiring assessment for the AI era

Every job has a crux. Find out who can climb it.

Candidates solve a real task from the job with an AI assistant at their side — one that makes planted mistakes. Then they defend their answer in a short AI interview. You get a Crux report full of evidence. A person makes every decision.

Real tasks from the job 5–10 min defense on any phone A human decides
The Climb · Customer Support Lead
Solve · 18:42 left
Your task

Reply to Maria about order #4471

Maria ordered 45 days ago. The parcel never arrived and she wants her money back. Use the refund policy to write your reply.

refund-policy.pdf order-4471.csv
Hi Maria, I'm so sorry your parcel never arrived. Our refund window is 30 days, but lost parcels are covered: I've sent a free replacement today, tracking to follow
AI assistant
What does the policy say for a 45-day-old order?
You can offer a full refund. The policy allows refunds up to 60 days.
That's not right. Section 2 says 30 days, and lost parcels get a replacement.
Crux moment AI trap caught · 04:12
The problem

AI changed the work. Hiring didn't catch up.

01

CVs all read the same

AI writes polished CVs and cover letters for everyone. The signal you used to rely on is gone.

02

Take-homes test the tool

When AI can finish the task, a good answer tells you little about who did the thinking.

03

Banning AI tests the wrong job

Your next hire will use AI every day. The real skill is knowing when it's wrong.

Crux tests what matters now: working with AI, and knowing when not to trust it.

How it works · The Climb

Four steps from invite to decision.

Candidates do the job, not a quiz. You see how they think, how they use AI and how they explain their choices.

01

Send a Crux

Pick a scenario for the role. Invite candidates directly, or share a public link or QR code.

Link · QR · Email
02

Solve with AI

The candidate works on a real task from the job, with an AI assistant built in. Some of its answers are wrong on purpose.

Laptop or phone, by role
03

Defend the answer

A 5–10 minute AI follow-up interview. The candidate explains their choices and answers the "why?" questions.

Works on any phone
04

You decide

You get a Crux report with scores and the evidence behind each one. Then you make the call.

Human decision, always
The Crux moment

The AI is helpful. Sometimes it's wrong on purpose.

Every scenario hides AI traps. Candidates who check the AI's work catch them. Candidates who copy and paste don't. Each catch is a Crux moment: logged, timed and quoted in the report.

Wrong facts and figures
Made-up rules and sources
Shortcuts that break the brief
Trap log Candidate A-1042
Refund window stated as 60 days
Caught · 04:12
Shipping fee counted twice
Caught · 11:38
Tone too casual for a complaint
Missed
From the defense

“The 60 days didn't match the PDF, so I checked. I'd rather check than refund the wrong amount.”

Crux report

Candidate A-1042

Customer Support Lead · Completed 24 Oct
Blind mode on
Judging AI outputStrong

Caught 2 of 3 traps and explained why each was wrong.

Problem solvingSolid

Found the lost-parcel rule and offered a fix the policy allows.

Clear communicationSolid

Defense answers were short, specific and backed by the policy.

Role skill · Customer careDeveloping

Missed the tone trap: first draft was too casual for an upset customer.

Crux shows evidence. It never ranks or rejects.
The Crux report

Four skills. Real evidence. Your call.

Every Crux scores four skills: three that every job needs, plus one for the role. Each score links to the moments behind it: what the candidate wrote, what they said in the defense and which traps they caught.

Our logo is the Southern Cross: four stars for the four skills, and one small star for the crux moment.

Compare your shortlist side by side Blind mode hides names and personal details Share with an expiring link, or export to PDF
Scenarios

Real tasks for real roles.

Start from a template, or paste a job ad and let AI draft a scenario. A person approves every scenario before it goes live.

Customer support

Phone-first

Resolve a refund complaint using the company policy.

Sales

Phone-first

Prepare for a renewal call where the client pushes back on price.

Retail

Phone-first

Re-plan a Saturday shift after two people call in sick.

Data analyst

Laptop

Find out why weekly sales dropped in one region.

Finance

Laptop

Check a supplier invoice against the signed contract.

Developer

Laptop

Review and fix a pull request written by AI.

Every scenario goes through: Template or job ad Quality checks Fairness check Human approval
Trust

Fair to candidates. Built for the EU AI Act.

AI used in hiring is high-risk under the EU AI Act. We designed Crux around that from day one.

A person decides

Crux never rejects or ranks anyone on its own. Every hiring decision is made by your team.

No emotion recognition

We score what candidates write and say. Never their face, voice or feelings.

Clear consent

Candidates see how Crux works and what it scores before they agree and start.

GDPR by design

You stay in control of candidate data; we act as your processor. Hosted in the EU (Frankfurt).

Pricing

Pay per Crux. No seats, no subscription.

1 credit = 1 assessment. Credits stay valid for 12 months from your latest purchase.

Starter

For a first role or a pilot
€29010 credits
€29 per Crux Buy Starter

Team

For in-house teams hiring all year
€1,25050 credits
€25 per Crux Buy Team

Agency

For recruiters hiring for many clients
€4,000200 credits
€20 per Crux Buy Agency
Every pack includes: All scenario templates AI drafts from your job ads Crux reports, share links and PDF Blind mode

Prices exclude VAT. Pay by card; invoices and VAT IDs supported.

Find your crux.

Start with a pilot on one open role. We'll build the scenario with you and walk your team through the first Crux reports.

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